


Miraculous Flight

by PL_Panda



Category: Batman - All Media Types, DCU, Maribat - Fandom, Miraculous Ladybug, Superman - All Media Types
Genre: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug Friendship, Angst, F/M, Fluff, MariBat, Maribat Gift Exchange 2020, Salt, Share powers AU, Soulmates, class salt, marijon, no love square
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-06
Updated: 2021-01-06
Packaged: 2021-03-17 00:02:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,785
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28590696
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PL_Panda/pseuds/PL_Panda
Summary: Soulmates exist. You can find them by finding people with talents like yours. Or superpowers. You can also recognize them by the flare that happens when you find them.Why did Marinette have to get all the Kryptonian powers?
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir & Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Kara Zor-El/Adrien Agreste |Chat Noir, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Jonathan Samuel Kent
Comments: 8
Kudos: 230





	Miraculous Flight

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Nieri_is_a_cat](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Nieri_is_a_cat/gifts).



> Happy Holidays Nieri! :)
> 
> Also, I'm not dead. I'm working on new projects (plus school).

**Maribat Secret Santa 2020**

####  Chapter 1

**Note: In this AU, Adrien and Marinette became fast friends, but she never had any romantic interest in the boy since she was certain he wasn’t her soulmate.**

\----------

It was common knowledge that soulmates shared their abilities. Whatever one learned, the other could do as well. It didn’t matter if the ability was mental or physical, soulmates would always share it. For example, if your soulmate was a master martial artist, so would you be. There were many tales of two master martial artists meeting on a tournament, only for their bond to flare. 

That was another thing. To leave no doubt about who your soulmate was when the two (or more) met, in the right circumstances the bond would flare. The subtle, but impossible to miss light would emit between them. In extreme cases, the event was accompanied by something more. For those of truly good hearts, the surrounding could come to new life. It was without a doubt a beautiful sight. But if their hearts were corrupted, if the good was absent in their lives, there could be a pulse of destruction that would corrode, spoil, or otherwise destroy all that was near, humans included. Those instances happened only to the greatest or worse society could birth.

\----------

Marinette was just a normal girl with a normal life. Except there was something about her that no one knew. Her parents made sure it was a secret. You see, Marinette was born with powers. She could fly; She was strong; She was fast; She was practically indestructible. The list could go on. 

Her parents knew it was most likely a sign of a Soulbond. Neither had any idea how else to explain it, but some small voice in the back of their head told them that it was best to make sure their daughter kept her ‘talent’ secret. 

For years, Marinette knew that she had to ensure her unnatural talents remained secret. She appeared incredibly clumsy and delicate. At first, it was because she had no idea how the normal human body would react to for example being smacked with a sandwich, but in time she just incorporated it into her personality. She didn’t like living in a lie, but for the safety of herself and her family, she didn’t risk it. 

Only one person in school saw through her lies. Well, not  _ precisely _ saw through, but suspected. Chloé knew there was something fake about Marinette. She was sure that the bright, bubbly girl was hiding some terrible secret and tried to warn others. Their class didn’t want to believe that she was right though. They chose to brand Chloé as a jealous bully and ostracize her. Marinette tried so hard to extend a hand to the blonde, to include her in everything they did but in the end, it was for naught. Slowly, Chloé became bitter and decided that since they treat her as a bully, she might as well get some fun out of it. 

In time, Marinette was so used to acting clumsy that it became her second nature. She stopped herself from balancing herself (in the most ridiculously-looking way), she applied no strength to anything (which made her look incredibly weak), and she made sure not to look through the carried object with x-ray vision so she could crash into a wall or (rarely) another person. 

Then, when she was fourteen, she received a small box with earrings inside. When the flying bug-mouse explained it, she leaped at the chance to save her city. The mask allowed her to let go and use her powers to the fullest degree. She could fly, she was strong and fast, she even could shoot lasers to her heart’s desire. Of course, she still did her job, joined by a cat hero with identical powers, that was yet certain that they weren’t soulmates and that there were others like them. 

From her Cat, she learned about Krypton and Kryptonians. In the hindsight, she should’ve paid more attention to foreign and international news networks. Then, she might’ve heard of Superman. But at least now she knew that her soulmate was in fact an alien. It didn’t exactly alleviate her worry, but it gave her some perspective. The fact that most of them were hiding or criminal also didn’t raise her hopes. She knew that it was never guaranteed that one would meet one’s soulmate. 

Being a hero added to her workload, but it wasn’t the reason why she found her life in crumbles. 

The reason’s name was Lila Rossi. 

The liar wrapped the class around her finger the moment she entered through the doors. With her silver tongue and sweet lies she quickly gained their trust. Marinette almost caught herself trusting her as well. After all, she was the go-to designer of Jagged Stone, Chloé was Mayor’s daughter and Adrien was a super-model. Not to mention others in her class, who also had famous parents or family. But one lie made the whole thing fall apart. When Lila claimed to be best friends with Ladybug, she knew that it was all just a tale, a big lie. 

It was when she tried to warn her friends that she learned for the first time exactly how cruel her “friends” could be. Collectively, they just decided she was jealous of Lila and turned their back on her. The Liar fanned the flames too, framing her for more and more outlandish things. Everyone quickly jumped on the bandwagon and started to ostracize her while simultaneously demanding more and more of her. They tried to guilt-trip her into doing favors for them in exchange for ‘reconsidering’ their stance. Of course, she quickly realized it was all for nothing. That they just wanted to get everything they could out of her. When she refused for the first time, Alya (because it had to be Alya) slapped her. Hard. 

The girl broke her wrist. 

Marinette barely avoided expulsion when a panicked reporter lied about how she was injured. Hearing Lila validating everything made it all the more real. 

Thank God for her parents. They accepted the true explanation, but at the same time written off the slap as a spur of the moment. No matter how much Marinette tried to tell them about how the class treated her, they always just nodded and forgot about it later on. 

Adrien was perhaps the only other person that believed her. He was well aware of how the class could act. Chloé cried many afternoons when the class did it to her, but back then he believed it to be overexaggerated just like her other tales. Now, he’d seen it with his own eyes. 

He assured her that he had her back, but his hands were tied. He couldn’t do anything. If he told his father, it would be the last time he’d seen the school or any of his friends.

After a particularly nasty day, he desperately wanted to comfort Marinette with more than words. He wanted to give her something. He  _ needed _ to do something.

He decided to reveal he was a Kryptonian, just like the rest of his family. 

The panicked screech he expected, after all not every day you learn your best friend is an alien. 

The smack that actually hurt was a surprise, but it could’ve been adrenaline. 

A realization that he was Chat Noir was hard to swallow. How did she connect the dots?

A flying Kwami berating his recklessness was a surprise, especially when said Kwami demanded Plagg to pay up. 

After that, their bond grew. 

\---------

Except his father tried to push him at Lila. For some reason, the man was convinced she would be a perfect match for him.

Adrien threatened to dye his hair neon green.

His father threatened to disinherit him.

Adrien threatened to go to the press.

His father relented but kept pushing the two together, which was the best Adrien could’ve hoped for.

\----------

It was almost the end of the year. Marinette looked forward to the summer with only a grain of salt. The added responsibilities of a guardian were weighing her down, but she had Adrien’s full support. She hated Chloé even more now, even though she wasn’t sure it was possible. 

Madame Bustier entered the class beaming.

“Children. Lila’s got something to tell to you.”

“We’re going to America!” Next to her, the liar announced. She was smiling in her usual fake way. 

“Cool.” Adrien immediately leaped at the idea of being away from his father.  _ And maybe finding others of his race? _ The bluenette guessed. He told Mari that he and his father were the only Kryptonians in Europe that he knew of, now that his half-Kryptonian cousin and aunt Amelie moved to the states in hope of blending in better. It was a logical conclusion that he would want to meet others.

“Yes! I managed to plan and get approval for a trip to Gotham City!”

The enthusiasm in the class was in Marinette’s opinion completely misplaced. And while she had no warm feelings toward anyone but Adrien, she didn’t want them dead. 

“You want us all to go to the World’s Capital of Crime?” She asked outraged. “The place that actively discourages tourists?!”

“ _ She would fit right in,” _ Alix whispered behind her, making Kim laugh.

Ignoring the jab, Marinette stared Lila down. “I, for once, refuse to go to the place that I have a bigger chance to get mugged than to find a Starbucks.”

“We don’t want you there anyway!” Alya shouted. 

“Yeah! You would ruin everything!” Others joined. Marinette felt a tear well in her eye, but she refused to show any weakness. 

“I also refuse.” Adrien protested, still smiling. “She is right that the city is too dangerous. I’m certain that my father will not let me go.”

Lila was already crying crocodile tears. “You… You are a bully Marinette. You just don’t… You just don’t want me to meet my Damiboo!”

“You can go for all I care. I just tried to save you from a mugging, kidnapping, being held hostage by an insane criminal, or potentially dying.” Marinette was done with that mess. “I’ll be going to Metropolis with Adrien since he offered. Maybe I’ll even get to visit Daily Planet.” She smiled at Alya, who in turn gritted her teeth. 

“ _ When did I offer to take you _ ?” He whispered from his place next to her.

“ _ Today. _ ” She answered. “ _ Please?” _ She tried the puppy eyes trick. It did work.

“ _ Fine. I’ll blackmail my father with the cat shirt. _ ” 

The class by now moved onto more interesting (to them) topics, like what will they see in Gotham and how many celebrities Lila can introduce them to in America.

The day passed by mostly uneventful. Adrien had to stay for fencing, so Marinette was returning home alone. The rain was particularly violent that day and she didn’t fancy staying at the cold school, especially since she lived rather 

That is before Alya, and others cornered her just when she reached the crossroad. Lila was conveniently nowhere to be seen. The street was now darkened by the sun hidden behind thick clouds and empty of any passersby because of the rain and cold.

“You think you’re going to ruin Lila’s big chance to reunite with her soulmate?” Alya glared at her. 

“We won’t let you!” Rose spit at her, which Marinette easily avoided by taking a step back. In doing so, she accidentally stumbled into Ivan who grabbed her and lifted her off the ground. Now she started to actually get worried. Not that they would hurt her, but about her secret getting out. Would her parents move from Paris with her? Would she be forced to move on her own? She couldn’t leave Paris unprotected! She would have to stay, but couldn’t be with her parents! She wouldn’t be able to go to school or meet Adrien outside the costumes or even design! She would have to abandon everything!

From the shadows, Lila walked with a malicious smile on her face, the kind that froze the blood in Mari’s veins. No one but her and maybe Ivan could see how Lila looked. 

“I’m so sorry Marinette. Alya told me that you won’t stop until we teach you a lesson.” Lila tried to sound compassionate.

“Yeah. Just like we’ve taught Chloé years ago!” Kim seemed almost giddy. There was a dark glimmer in his eyes that Marinette sometimes thought she’s seen. She always dismissed it though. Was her friend really… violent?

Lila didn’t let her get over the confusion before she delivered a punch. Marinette folded in two, trying to avoid damaging Lila too much. 

A silent cry of pain echoed through the street.

Marinette felt tears well in her eyes as the air was forcibly expelled from her lungs. She felt pain like that when fighting akumas. It was the emotional pain that made her scream. Nobody stopped Lila. They watched as she was beaten. 

Again.

Again.

Leg.

Arm.

Lungs again.

Liver.

Marinette had enough. She flew up, making it look like she just leaped. Lila was already mid-punch, which ended up hitting Ivan below the belt. The high-pitched cry almost deafened everyone. Marinette used the opportunity to free herself and run. She didn’t go home. It was too obvious and she wasn’t sure what they would really be able to do. What if they hurt her parents too?

Did they really do this to Chloé? Did they corner her when they were all younger and beat her? Were they always monsters?

She allowed her legs, one of which was broken, to carry her. She wanted safe. She wanted calm. She wanted a family.

At some point, she might’ve flown. 

She also probably blacked out. 

When her eyes opened, she was in a strange crystal pod. The semi-translucent energy field separated her from the rest of the world. She could still feel some pain, but otherwise, she was healed. She did feel sore, but it was heavens better than before. 

On the outside, she could hear some argument. Slowly, she tried to lift the top of the pod, only to stumble up and end up sitting as the field turned out to be pass-through. 

Immediately, the voices stopped and two people approached her. Adrien was one of them. The other was non-other than Gabriel Agreste. They both wore strange robe-like clothes that were somewhat close to what newer Gabriel designs resembled. 

“I see you’re awake miss.” The man stated coldly.

“Y-Yes, sir!” She stumbled upon her words as she felt under deep scrutiny.

“When you flew, crashing through my doors I had half mind to kick you out of the manor. It was my son’s  _ intervention _ ” He said the word through the gritted teeth, “that made me reconsider.” 

“I… I’m sorry for my intrusion… I just…”

“We already know. While I was making sure the internal bleeding didn’t kill you, my son went to visit Mr. Lahiffe to learn about the details. I’m regretful to inform you that no charges can be pressed.” 

“What!?” She shouted before lowering her head in an apologetic gesture. “I didn’t mean to be rude, but…”

“To save your life, I used Kryptonian technology that reversed most of the damage. As such, there is absolutely no proof of anything. Your word against theirs will mean nothing without physical evidence.” He glared at her.

“I understand.” She nodded slowly. “I’m sorry I caused you all the trouble, but I didn’t know where else to go.” She admitted while getting up. Adrien immediately went to help her. 

To her surprise, Mr. Agreste’s expression softened. “I apologize if my demeanor caused you discomfort. In the light of what we learned, it is my belief that you did the best given the circumstances.” He didn’t explain.

“What my Father means, is that he is angry at me for withholding the fact about your powers.” Adrien glared at the man. 

“Had I known earlier, there were many situations that could’ve been avoided,” Gabriel returned the glare.

“Um…” Marinette was really confused by the situation. 

“Miss Dupain-Cheng?” Nathalie arrived out of nowhere. “Here are the adoption papers for you to sign.”

“A-ad-adoption papers?” The words barely passed through her throat. “Did… What…”

“Perfect timing, Nathalie.” Adrien deadpanned. 

“I thought you were supposed to explain it to her as she woke up.” She retorted. 

“We’ve…” Adrien began while rubbing the back of his neck.

“We’ve got sidetracked with other matters.”

“Oh.” Nathalie raised an eyebrow and glared at both of them. For the first time, Marinette could see the resemblance between father and son. “All right then.” The assistant turned the girl and her face softened as she started to explain. “When you arrived, you were barely alive so we’ve put you into a stasis pod that would rejuvenate your body. The procedure can cure all…  _ almost _ all damage in Kryptonians. And their soulmates too. The problem is, it takes time. It’s been two weeks and no one even noticed you were missing. When I confronted your parents about the situation, they were sure you were in your room or out in town with friends. They dismissed the fact that you missed two weeks of school. Such gross negligence forced us to call the police. Your parents have been arrested for child negligence.” Nathalie finished her tale with an understanding look. 

“But… Sure, they weren’t always perfect… They worked… But… We did play video games! We spent time together! They weren’t neglecting me! Maybe they just had some major orders!”

“I understand.” Nathalie put a hand on her shoulder, offering some comfort. “Believe me, I do. But it doesn’t change the fact that you’ve been gone for two weeks and they didn’t care. The school had records of informing them of your chronic absence, but nothing further was done and the school official was told that they would ‘look into it’. Even if we didn’t do anything, the school would very soon.” 

“I…” Marinette felt tears well in her eyes. “But… And… Maybe…” She was a jumbled mess. 

\-------

The next day was no less emotional. There was an interview with a police officer that was a personal friend to Gabriel and was aware of his secret. Then, she moved into the manor. Marinette slowly came to accept the change, especially when she realized that she hasn’t spoken to her parents more than two sentences in years. 

While during the week Gabriel was busy he made sure that the first weekend, they all got a chance to meet together and discuss certain matters.

“Now that you’ve had a chance to settle in, we can discuss certain matters. While you were recovering, I made sure to cut all ties with Lila Rossi and ensure she would be persona-non-grata in the fashion industry as long as I had anything to say. I am deeply sorry for what she did, as well as inflicting her on you, Adrien.”

“Why was she even here in the first place?” The blond boy questioned. 

“She is either child of a Kryptonian or a soulmate of one. I… mistaken her for one of our kind and invited her in. I foolishly revealed who I was, not expecting her to try and blackmail me.” 

Adrien laughed hard until Marinette elbowed him lightly. “I’m sorry. It’s just that father preached secrecy for  _ years _ . And now I learn that he just gave it away to some random girl.”

“May I remind you, Ad, that you revealed yourself to someone else as well?”

“Yeah, but I trusted Mari explicitly.” He countered without missing a beat. 

“Be as it may, you were endangering us.”

“Can we focus back on the topic at hand?” Nathalie glared at them. 

“Right.” The men looked sheepish before continuing. 

“Now, after you came to us, I was able to dismiss her. If she ever reveals the truth, I have records taken by the rejuvenation pod. While impossible to reveal now, she can no longer risk exposing us.” Gabriel had a rather evil-looking smile on his face until Nathalie coughed subtly and he returned to his usual expression. “I also discussed with my son the  _ trip _ he invited you to. I believe it would be best if you went there when the class leaves Paris as well. I’ve planned a business trip to coincide with that time before I learned about the trip’s destination.”

“Thank you, sir/Thanks, Father.” the teens said at the same time. 

“Now that those are resolved, I will leave it to Nathalie to explain other details.” With that, Gabriel stood up.

“Um… one question, sir.” Marinette hesitantly asked.

“Yes?” Gabriel turned and looked at her.

“I… when reading an old interview with Superman, he said that his Kryptonian name is Kal-El. Do you have one?”

“...”

“I…” She was about to apologize when he spoke.

“It’s Gab-Rel.” He said in a weird tone before leaving. The teens could swear he was actually sad.

“Mine is Ad-Rel.” The blond boy offered cheerfully to lift the heavy atmosphere.

\-------

Marinette made sure to always stay near Adrien, who in turn became a fierce bodyguard. The official story was that she suffered temporary amnesia after an accident and stayed in the hospital until she remembered everything.

The class didn’t get a chance to repeat their performance from two weeks ago, but the verbal jabs increased. The whole mess gave a lot more ammunition.

But on the brighter side, Marinette has taken in strides living with the Kryptonians. She was still shocked by the freedom to use her powers. She once seen Adrien casually make toasts with heat vision when he was too lazy to get the machine out. He also regularly flew up to get the things from the top shelf. Mr. Agreste floated around without touching the ground whenever he could get away with it. All the privacy suddenly made much more sense. They wouldn’t survive a day if they had non-Kryptonian guests.

The time of the trip to the states was approaching fast. 

\-----------

“I’m so happy for you, Lila!” Alya cheered for the Liar. “You’ll finally get to meet your soulmate. I’m sure of it.”

Nearby, Adrien and Marinette were making funny faces at the unaware class. They waited to be cleared to enter Agreste’s private plane.

“Do you think we’ll see the Batfamily?”

“Of course we will! I heard Lila is friends with them.”

“Exactly. I helped…”

At this point, Adrien and Marinette were cleared and didn’t waste more time standing there. The plane would be leaving soon enough. 

They arrived in Metropolis faster than she expected. A boon of private planes. They both fell asleep during the flight.

“Now that we are no longer under my father’s or Nathalie’s watch, there is someone I want you to meet.” Adrien grinned.

“Um… shouldn’t we first get to the Hotel?” She asked, still a bit tired.

“That can wait. I want to introduce you to Kara.”

Marinette just nodded and followed him. She knew him well enough to not argue when he was this excited. Adrien was usually reserved, but sometimes he got hung up on an idea. Then, it was almost impossible to get him to drop it. 

They boarded the nearest Taxi and Adrien gave some address that told Marinette absolutely nothing. 

“Can I at least know who that ‘Kara’ is?” She asked, still confused. 

“Oh! Sorry! Yeah… She’s my soulmate.” He gave her a sheepish smile, but he wasn’t really sorry. 

“What!?” She jumped in her seat and stared at him with eyes that doubled in size. 

“Um… I told you how Kryptonians don’t really believe in soulmates?”

“Yeah…?” She looked at him, expecting a further explanation. 

“Well, you know my father. He is an extremely…  _ practical  _ man.” He said with a bit of disdain. “He considers soulmates as some… reality glitch or whatever. The point is, he doesn’t care about them.”

“That… that’s horrible. Soulmates are beautiful! They give your life a new meaning! Look at me!” Mari was right horrified at the concept. How could someone disregard one of the fundamental principles of the universe?

“Oh! He accepts that there is  _ something _ but… Kryptonians didn’t really meet their spouses until the marriage usually, much less have physical contact with them.” Adrien explained. “So… soulmates were more of a myth. There weren’t too many of ‘star-crossed lovers’ stories in Kryptonian poetry.”

“Still…” She tried

“Oh! I completely disagree with my father on that one.” He reassured her. Mari did relax after that. Still, the idea that someone could know about the existence of soul-mates and actively disregard it…

“So anyway, I met Kara on one of the Fashion Shows. She was there with her reporter cousin, Clark. Or at least I think they are biological cousins… I never actually seen Clark do anything remotely Kryptonian. He doesn’t even speak the language that well… You’re much better than him from what I heard. And he definitely dislikes Kryptonian fashion.”

Mari couldn’t help but chuckle. Personally, she was indifferent to it. In perspective, Gabriel brand did get closer and closer to what they wore on Krypton. 

“Well… Maybe he’s just fashion-blind?”

“That may be.” Adrien chuckled. 

They were really lucky that their part was separated from the front by a thick window and the driver closed it as soon as two gossipy teenagers got in. He hated teenagers, but they paid just like anyone and money’s money. 

The apartment turned out to be in a mid-income district, not far from the Metropolis High. They walked to the second floor, only for the doors to burst open.

“Adrien!” An overenergetic blonde girl their age, dressed in cheer-leader get-up, jumped and tackled the blond model. Marinette wanted to intervene before she realized that it had to be, in fact, Adrien’s soulmate. 

“Hi, Kara.” He confirmed it as he hugged her back. “Meet Marinette.” He somehow managed to point at the girl that stood awkwardly next to them. 

“Oh… Hi.” Kara flew up while still holding Adrien and put them both down. She then extended her hand. “I’m Kara Kent.”

“Marinette Du… Agreste.” She corrected herself. She wanted to keep her own at first, but Adrien convinced her that then they could be full siblings in all but blood. Gabriel heard it and muttered something about ‘more research’ which worried her a tiny bit if she was to be honest.

“Um… Is she… Did…” Kara was trying to subtly prod Adrien about something.

“Yeah, Kara. She knows.” He shook his head at the antics. It was clear that there was a degree of familiarity between the two. They were at the ‘completely comfortable around each other’ stage of the relationship. Just how long did they keep it a secret?

“We were thirteen.” Adrien seemed to read her mind. “You’ve got  _ the look _ on your face. The one you always get when figuring how to use Lucky Charm.” 

“Adrien!” She yelled at him. “You can’t just…”

“She knows.” He casually dismissed it.

“What! Master Fu…” she tried, but he lifted a hand. 

“I had to warn her. I didn’t really want her to suddenly cataclysm a city while making coffee.” 

It was responsible. Marinette wasn’t sure if ‘borrowed’ powers counted toward the whole soulmate thing. The trained abilities did…  **Did she give her soulmate random powers at random times?!**

“Maybe we’ll take it inside. Having an identity crisis in the middle of a hall sounds… okay, but could offer something to drink. And you can meet babs.”

“Who?”

“Someone you will get on with amazingly.” Kara smiled softly and pulled them both inside. 

Inside, a redhead awaited them with a tray of cookies and ready-made tea. 

“How did you…’

“You suddenly bolted to the doors barely below the speed of sound. Of course, I knew it was him. And since you didn’t come back immediately, it meant either you were making out in the corridor or he brought a guest.”

“Uh-huh.” Marinette looked at the redhead up and down, took a glance at the tea-set, and then smirked. “You just heard three voices talking outside.”

“Wha-! The idea… Yeah. How did you figure it out?” Babs had a similar smirk.

“The tea you made would be awful if you started it as soon as Kara jumped through the doors. I can see the flavor name on the tag. Also, your hair is in perfect condition, which it shouldn’t be if she at any point passed near you at near-sound speed. And since there is a TV remote in your pocket. Kara is dressed in what I assume is her practice outfit. I would say you were watching TV in the main room while Kara was practicing in the other part of the home. When you heard the three of us outside, you quickly put the tea in and wanted to appear smarter.”

The three stared at her with wide eyes before Babs started to laugh. 

“Also, take the teabags out before you ruin the tea,” Mari added with a satisfied smirk. 

“I gotta introduce you to B. when we’re done here.” 

“Who?” Both Mari and Adrien asked, confusion clear on their face.

“Nevermind.” Babs dismissed them and quickly pulled out the teabags as per command. 

The four of them had a pleasant afternoon catching up and getting Mari up to speed on everything. Adrien and Mari told everyone gathered the full story of what happened to her since Babs already knew almost everything anyway and swore not to come to Paris in near future. Akumas wouldn’t reach her across the ocean.

“So that girl has Kryptonian powers, but uses them to bully and almost kill someone?” Kara asked for another clarification after the tale. 

“Yeah.” Adrien and Mari nodded at the same time. They didn’t really notice how much in synch they were since the reveal. 

“And yet, you did nothing?”

“We don’t have any actual  _ proof _ …” Marinette pointed out. 

“So? Force a confrontation.”

“She’ll just get akumatized and then she can blame every power she shows on the akuma.”

“It’s still hard to believe you’re fighting butterflies of all things. Couldn’t the villain choose something more… evil? Like rats? Or crows?” Babs asked.

“I have no idea.”

“Back to the Lila business. Why not confront her when she’s in Gotham then?” Kara inquired. 

Babs stared at her with wide eyes. “Um… because of Batman? You know well enough that he doesn’t appreciate anything remotely alien in his city. Green Lanterns need his permission to enter Gotham! They protect the entire universe!”

“That’s just a myth.” Kara countered. “Besides, we could just tip him off then.”

“You have a direct landline to Batman?” Adrien asked, clearly thinking it was a joke.

“Well… um… I… We… Babs…” Kara was clearly trying to come up with something. While the blond model was completely obvious to it, Mari noticed. She filed it under ‘strange’ and moved on. Adrien trusted Kara, so it had to be enough. 

“My dad is Gotham’s chief commissioner,” Babs smirked. “He does have a large lamp that summons bats.”

“You can try it while you return. Can we order some take-outs? It’s already dark and tomorrow we’re visiting Daily Planet.” Adrien suggested and everyone eagerly agreed. There were three hungry Kryptonians there.

\-----------

Daily Planet was… huge. Marinette went to the TVi studio often enough to at least  _ think _ she was prepared. She wasn’t. 

The building was twice the size of the studio in Paris. It also had a giant, 3-D statue of the Daily Planet Logo on the top that she really wanted to check out. 

The person that greeted them was Kara’s cousin, Clark. She watched as he walked to them with his wife, Lois. He tripped half-way there, but she caught him. Suddenly, the realization hit her just as the two reporters stood in front of them to greet them. 

“So you  _ are _ a Kryptonian after all…” She muttered, but Clark heard it with the super-hearing.

“Wha-”

“It’s the way you walk. You constantly make a conscious effort to appear ‘normal’. Most people probably won’t notice it, but your steps are always calculated. You make sure not to apply too much pressure. Occasionally, when passing certain people, it takes a more conscious attempt than other times. Also, when you trip you let Lois catch you, even though you were initially ready to stop it yourself.”

Clark looked at Mari. He looked her in the eyes. Then moved to her hair. Then again looked into her eyes. “Um… Lois, Honey… Could you start? I need to call B. and tell him I found one of his…”

“Who?” The girl asked, confused by what was going on.

“Don’t worry about my husband’s antics. He’s not used to people outsmarting him.” Then she smirked and winked at Mari. “One would think that after twelve years of being married to me he would know better.” 

“Hey!” Clark protested, but then smiled. “I want to argue, but you’re right.” He then turned back to the group and saw all of them smiling. “Name’s Clark Kent. Nice to meet ya’.”

“Hello, Mr. Kent. My name is Marinette.” They shook hands before the man moved to the model

“Adrien. Good to see you.” He said with a bit less cheer in his voice. The two seemed to exchange a bone-crushing handshake that was a stalemate until Lois coughed lightly. That served to stop the silent argument. Clearly, someone didn’t approve of his cousin’s soulmate. For whatever reason.

The trip was enlightening. Marinette didn’t really pay that much attention to the news world. That was more Alya’s specialty. She had occasionally listened to some gossip that Nadia shared when she was dropping off or picking Manon. Now, she had a chance to see the whole process from the inside, which was much more educational.

She was so focused on what Lois was telling them that she didn’t notice a boy wandering around until they were on an unavoidable collision course. The best they could do was extend their hands to at least minimize the damage.

As soon as Marinette and his hands touched, the whole room was lit with incredibly bright light. When anyone could see again, the whole place seemed to suddenly be filled with life to the point the air itself felt full of energy. People started to cheer loudly.

“Um… Mom?” The boy looked at Lois in confusion. “What just happened?”

“I don’t know for sure, but you should  _ white _ the date.” Adrien offered. He usually tried to avoid puns out of the catsuit, but the energy was making him giddy to the point he didn’t care. “It might be im- _ paw _ -tant.”

“Adrien.” Kara glared at him. “If you don’t stop, I’ll make you sleep on the couch.” She threatened, which, in the hindsight, might not have been the best decision with her overprotective cousin right next to her.

“And where else does he sleep?”

“In the bed, duh.” Adrien didn’t really help the case.

“In the guest room.” Marinette, the only sensible person in the room (besides Babs and Lois) supplied.

“Can I know your name?” The boy she stumbled into asked.

“Oh! Yeah! Sorry! My bad! Sorry! Marinette’s name. Nette’s Mariname… Mari’s namenette…?” She bubbled incoherently. While others might’ve been confused, she knew perfectly well that this was her soulmate.

“This is Marinette, Jon. She’s Adrien’s adopted sister.” Kara decided to spare the girl some embarrassment. 

“Oh… Cool. Um… What next, dad?” He asked, looking completely clueless. 

“Well… um…” At that moment, Lois tried not to laugh (and Kara just laughed instead) at how similar the two were. “I… I think I still need to call B.” Clark finally answered.

“Really?” Lois asked in disbelief. “How did I ever actually end up married to you?”

“Weren’t you the one that proposed?” Kara supplied, taking way too much pleasure with this. 

“Right you are,” Lois smiled.

“Um… I think I’ll just sit down?” Mari walked to a chair, still rubbing her eyes. The light wasn’t supposed to be so bright, right? She would need to ask Tikki about it later. 

“Good idea!” Jon joined her, completely oblivious. The two ended sitting awkwardly next to one another while Clark, Lois, Kara, and Adrien laughed. Finally, Clark took mercy on them. 

“Let’s go to my office. We’ll have some  _ privacy _ there.” He glared at the coworker that paid a little too much attention to everything. Said coworker immediately focused on his papers with increased focus and haste. 

The group moved to the spacious office of the senior reporter (with several awards to his name) and sat on the couches in the corner. 

“So…” Jon started a bit awkwardly. 

“Looks like we’re soulmates?” It was more of a question than a statement. 

“Looks like we’re soulmates.” Jon nodded slowly. “This is weird… Can I go call D.?” He asked, looking at his father. Clark looked about ready to agree when Lois interfered.

“No. You can’t just rely on  _ them _ to do the thinking for you.”

“But he always actually knows what to do.”

“Now’s the time for you to figure it out on your own.” His mother left no place for an argument. 

“Um…” He turned to Mari, who was still in a form of shock. She was not prepared. “Wanna go hang out somewhere?”

“Sure?” She answered with a question.

“Great!” He stood up. 

“Well, at least you’re both equally awkward.” Adrien smiled at them.

“Kitty!” Marinette protested. “May I remind you how you acted with that fencer girl?!” 

“What fencer girl?” Kara asked with a raised eyebrow, making a perfect imitation of Lois when she glared at Clark. 

“I’ll leave you to it.” The bluenette laughed as she and Jon ran out of the office toward the elevator. 

\-------

Instead of leaving the building, the two arrived at the rooftop. Jon helped her sit at the edge. 

“Don’t worry. I’ll catch you.” He reassured her, but she smirked. 

“What makes you think I need catching?”

“You’re like me?”

“Duh. We’re soulmates.” She smiled. “Although I  _ should _ kick you in the shin for picking Trombone of all instruments.” 

“I was in the school band. And they only had one free space. I did use it once to freeze a villain that crashed the Football match.” He tried to defend himself. 

“I once put an Akuma into a jumper I’ve been making. He couldn’t get out and Chat Noir destroyed the object.” She decided to skip the Ladybug part, for now, not wanting to scare her soulmate on their first date.

“You’ve met the Parisian heroes?! Dad wanted to go, but Miss Diana forbid him.”

“Huh. Nice to know someone outside of Paris cared.”

“Oh! Many people did. Even Damian believed miss Diana when she told us about it.” Jon brightened.

“Damian… D.?” She realized. “He’s your friend?”

“Yeah. Dad often works with Mr. Bruce, so we were kinda bound to become at least colleagues.”

“You know… I’m not really that good with the whole ‘dating’ thing…” Marinette started. “I never even had a boyfriend. I didn’t even try! I had those powers and I knew that whoever was my soulmate would have them as well and I knew I would know pretty fast except the first boy I met that had the powers was certain that I wasn’t his soulmate, which in hindsight was right even if his excuses were pretty feeble at best and then I had an encounter with a bully that was as strong as me and I really hoped she wasn’t destined to somehow be my soulmate but I know that the universe hates me so it was entirely in the realm of plausibility that we would have a flare right in the middle of a fight behind the school or something.”

“I know. I really hoped it wouldn’t be someone I hate, but there is this kid that is really the son of my father’s worst nemesis. They go generations back even on Krypton. Anyway, Lor, that’s his name, constantly tries to mess with me, D., and Kon. Well, Kon really has his own problems, so I kinda just…” He paused when he saw her staring at him with wide eyes. He mentally ran through what he said, but couldn’t figure out what made her react like that.

“You’re Superboy. Your father is Superman…” She muttered bewildered. 

Jon had to  _ yet again _ go through what he said to figure out what gave it away. “Me?! Nah! What makes you think like that! Dad’s just a reporter! I just go to school…” He realized the problem. “My glasses slipped?”

“Yup.” She nodded slowly.

“Damn it! Now I owe D. a favor. I told dad I should have rubber on the back.”

“Where exactly did you get an idea that glasses are a good disguise?”

“Dad’s using it all the time. They are Kryptonian in origin. Indestructible and make a person blend into the crowd perfectly. Nobody notices anything unnatural about you when you wear them.”

“But they fall?”

“Well, the tech was supposed to be sewn into a hood until Dad made the glasses. He used to need leaded frames at school or his X-ray would go hay-wire. Gran told me he once accidentally burned through a slide projector screen when his heat vision activated.”

“I used to break things all the time.” She admitted, although her head was swirling with the discovery. Shouldn’t you like… put them back on?”

“Nah. It’s only you that realized the fact because you actually saw me take them off. Or drop them more precisely.” He explained. “It would take some time until anyone else connected the dots.”

“Um…” Jon could see she was fighting some inner war. “Well, I guess that it’s a good time for me to reveal that I’m also Ladybug.” She tried to give him a reassuring smile, but it was really forced. 

“Oh… Cool!” Jon smiled. He seemed completely unperturbed by the fact.

“Aren’t you… like… don’t you have questions?”

“My dad’s Superman and a top reporter. He either hangs out with superheroes or with famous people. Technically, there are also friends from his hometown. But Lex Luthor is from his hometown, so that’s also not exactly normal.”

“That seems… You know, I actually can totally see it happen.”

“So… What now?”

“Maybe let’s start with the basics?” She suggested. “Hi, I’m Marinette. I’m sixteen. I love fashion and I want to be a designer. I make my own clothes and work on commission. I also like photography. I adore both dogs and cats. I wanted to have a guinea pig when I was younger, but my parents owned a bakery so it wouldn’t work.”

“Okay. Hi, I’m Jon. I’m Fifteen and three quarter. I love flying, photography, and I guess I’m good at fashion too. My family owns a dog named Krypto. He was the test subject gramps used to see if he could save dad, but Krypto ended up drifting in space for some years. At the same time, it’s nothing like Damian. He has two dogs, a cat, a cow, a flying furry demon-thingy, I think he also adopted a pair of hyenas and a penguin recently, but that might just be a rumor spread by his brothers. He thinks they are a menace, but I personally believe they aren’t that bad.” He made a pause to take a second breath. Marinette decided to use the opportunity to ask a question.

“How can he keep a  _ cow _ as a pet? I get demon-thingy. But a cow?” She asked.

“Oh. Damian is  _ really _ protective. Like… if he adopts something, it can be sure that not even apocalypse can hurt it unless it goes through Damian. And then goes through him again because he would raise from his grave only to protect them.”

“Tt. Stop gossiping about me, Kent.” A voice came from Jon’s pocket. “Why are you face-calling me when in complete darkness? Were you kidnapped again?”

“Oh!” He started to fumble with his jacket until he managed to pull out the phone. The teen on the screen was around their age. He had black hair and green eyes (for a change). “Sorry. Must’ve been an accident.”

“Tt. Kent. Learn how to lock your phone properly next time.” Damian was probably about to hang up when Jon quickly pulled the camera closer to his face.

“Wait! I want to introduce you to someone!” The boy protested. 

“For the love of… Kent! I told you not to put the phone so close like… hundred times!”

“I know.” There was a satisfied smirk on Jon’s face. “But it does get your attention quickly.” 

“Tt. Who’s that?” He asked, pointing at something on his screen.

“Hi!” Marinette decided to wave him. “I’m Marinette.”

“She’s my soulmate!” Jon proclaimed proudly.

“Okay. Can you give her the phone?” Damian asked. When the boy obliged, Damian glared at Marinette. “Listen. I know that sunny-boy is useless at everything that requires higher brain functions…”

“Hey!”

“... but I can and will ruin you if you dare to try and hurt him. I will make your life a living hell the moment I…” Marinette didn’t hear the rest. Her hands clenched into fists and all that was left from the phone was a very bent frame, a bit of crushed electronics, and tiny glass shards. 

“I… I don’t think I like him.” She said as a single tear welled in her eye. Jon, acting on pure instinct made a leap of faith and pulled her into a hug. “I’m tired of… of that… Why is he so mean?”

“Damian is useless at expressing emotions. Don’t take it personally. He meant it as a warning. Shovel Talk. Or something like that. Dad’s called it Shotgun talk, but I think there is some difference. Or maybe just that Damian is from Gotham?” Jon kept talking and talking, drifting further and further from the subject. Marinette’s brain was kinda dragged along with him and she found herself laughing at a joke he cracked. 

“Thanks. You know, Adrien usually just puns me out of the foul mood.” She smiled weakly.

“How do you survive?”

“I have no idea.” She laughed. “But… it’s nice here, you know? I wonder if we could stay.”

“Cold never bothered me anyway.” Jon laughed.

“Did you just quote ‘Frozen’ on me?” She cocked an eyebrow.

“Maybe?” She squirmed under her gaze.

“...” 

“...”

“I have nothing. Damn! I used to be able to recite that movie.” 

“Watch it at my home!? I have a disc  _ somewhere _ .”

“Sure.” They got up. “And thanks.”

“Nah. Soulmates are supposed to be perfect for each other, right?”

**\---------------**

**THE END**

**KONIEC**

**\---------------**


End file.
